Te Ao Māori for Students FAQ

Below we have answered some of the frequently asked questions for our Te Ao Māori for Schools resources.

In the classroom

My students have varying levels - everything from 'brand new to NZ' to 'grew up speaking Māori' in the same class. Does EP cater for this?

The course material is predominantly designed for beginner to intermediate level learners, however, there is advanced material available for more proficient learners and we are committed to developing this area of our content further. In addition to our content, kaiako have the ability to customise our lessons or create their very own using regional reo, kōrero tuku iho and localised tikanga. 

The course is written in a different mita (dialect) to our regional one. Can the content be adapted? Why is it in this dialect? 

Yes, absolutely. Within EP Studio you can alter slides within lessons or create original lessons yourself and share with your ākonga (all the while retaining the full functionalities of the EP platform). Our Te Ao Māori content on EP has been designed to be as generalised as possible, so as to cater for as many learners across Aotearoa as possible.

I don't speak great Māori - I just picked up a class as they needed someone. Can I do the course as well?

The beauty of our Te Ao Māori for Students course is that you do not need to be an expert of Te Ao Māori or Te Reo Māori to facilitate it. The course is designed to support students’ acquisition without the need for a proficient speaker or mātauranga Māori specialist. If you, yourself, are committed to developing your own cultural knowledge and capabilities, we have a professional development course for educators that you can participate in.

Course content

Is this course aligned to the NZ curriculum?

The course learning material and outcomes can be linked to the NZ curriculum. The content is not currently organised into levels, a kaiako needs to link our content to the achievement objectives within their units and lessons. We are, however, in the process of directly linking each EP Te Ao Māori module and lesson to the curriculum to ensure a clearer and smoother experience for our kaiako.

What Year Levels do your courses cater for?

Our courses are designed for Year 5-13 students, however, some kura within the Primary Sector are using EP Te Ao Māori successfully with their Year 3 & 4 students (facilitated by their kaiako in full class or focused guided group sessions).

What do you have for seniors (Years 11-13)?

Currently, we have a selection of advanced video lessons (He Puna Kiriata), immersion lessons & NCEA Level 1-3 practice exams. The higher-level content we offer is currently in development, but a kaiako can also customise or create their own lessons using EP Studio.

How often is new content created for the course(s) and how is this decided?

New lessons are created regularly (once a fortnight) and current lessons are continually being improved upon based on user feedback. New modules or lessons are created and prioritised based on demand and teacher feedback.

Can customised content/lessons be shared between kaiako and kura?

Yes. You have the option of keeping your lessons private and only accessible to your ākonga/kura or you can publically share your lesson for other educators to find and use. (Fantastic for sharing lessons between Kāhui Ako/CoLs).

Who wrote the content? 

The majority of the content for our Te Ao Māori courses has been written and produced by our Head of Kaupapa Māori, Te Rau Winterburn and Te Awe Davis our Māori Strategy Implementation lead. 

Te Rau is a Primary trained level 1 immersion teacher and has over 15 years of experience working in Māori-medium settings from Primary through to University & Wānanga levels. Te Rau is of Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Ngāi Tahu and Ngāti Kahungunu descent. 

Te Awe Davis is also trained in Māori Medium Education, teaching and sharing mātauranga Māori within ECE centres through to Primary, Secondary and Tertiary education spaces. Te Awe is of Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Manu and Ngāti Kahungunu decent.

Getting started

What is the cost?

There is a separate pricing model for each sector (Primary/Intermediate and Secondary School). Please get in touch to discuss your schools' needs to ensure we provide you with the best possible pricing package.

What is included in a subscription?

All the platform functionalities that EP has to offer: EP Studio, Assessment, Student Progress Tracking, Insights/Reporting and competitions. You will also have a dedicated customer success manager who is assigned to your kura and 24/7 technical support.

Please reach out to our Support team if you have any further questions about this course!